Carrie Turansky Interview

I'm delighted to have Carrie Turansky as a guest on The Borrowed Book today. Carrie is the award-winning author of ten novels and novellas. Carrie writes contemporary and historical romance for Barbour and Love Inspired. Her latest releases are A Man To Trust, Surrendered Hearts, and Christmas Mail-Order Brides. She lives in New Jersey with her husband, Scott, who is a pastor, author, speaker and counselor. They have five young adult children and three grandchildren. Carrie leads women's ministry at her church, and when she is not writing she enjoys gardening, reading, flower arranging, and cooking for friends and family.

Welcome to The Borrowed Book, Carrie. You’ve just had a book to release. Tell us its title and give us a short blurb about it. 

My new novel, A Man To Trust, was released by Love Inspired earlier this month. Here’s a short summary: After years spent helping run her family’s Christian bookstore, it’s time for Adrie Chandler to give her own dream of playing her flute with a symphony a chance. But can she really trust the beloved shop to new manager Ross Peterson? The man is too handsome, too charming and too much a reminder of another dream Adrie had to let go of – marriage. Yet Ross surprises her by knowing a thing or two about making sacrifices. Suddenly, Adrie is questioning what she really wants. And whether the dreams she once thought unlikely are within reach after all.

When the book opens, your heroine is lamenting that she’s having birthday cake instead of wedding cake. What happened in Adrie’s life to cause this?

The day the book opens is Adrie’s grandmother’s birthday, and it was supposed to be her wedding day, but five months earlier she found out her fiancé was involved with one of her friends, and she broke the engagement. This betrayal and heartbreak makes it very hard for Adrie to trust any man, especially Ross who seems so easygoing and likeable and looks a little like her former fiancé.  

Then Ross Peterson walks in. Tell us about this handsome young man who enters Adie’s life.

Ross first appeared in my novel, Seeking His Love, as the best friend of the hero, Cam McKenna. Ross is a photographer who had his own studio at the Arts Center in Fairhaven. But because of the downturn in the economy, he had to close his studio and look for another job. Cam introduces him to Adrie and her grandmother, Marian, who owns Bayside Books and recommends him for the position of manager. He’s immediately attracted to Adrie and has to patiently pursue her to win her heart.

A Man to Trust is the second book in your Bayside Treasures Series. I love the idea of who the Bayside Treasures are and what their mission is. Tell us about Marian, Hannah, Irene, and Barb.

These senior-age women have been friends for years and are as close as sisters. The get together every week at Bayside Books to play Scrabble and discuss matchmaking plans for their younger friends and relatives. They’re also wonderful prayer warriors who faithfully encourage each other and everyone they meet.

How did you come to use Fairhaven, the historic section of Bellingham, Washington, as your setting?

An editor encouraged me to find a setting with a name that reflected the heroine’s journey in the first book in this series, Seeking His Love. I’m originally from Oregon, and I wanted to set the series in the Northwest. So I went online and looked through a list of the names of towns in Washington and Oregon. When I saw the name Fairhaven, I thought that would be a great place for the heroine to go to try and build a new life, a place where she would feel safe and be able to leave her past mistakes behind. When I researched the town online, I found a storehouse of information posted by the Old Fairhaven Association to encourage people to visit their town. It’s a delightful place, and I’ve enjoyed including many actual streets, parks, restaurants and other businesses as well as community events in my books.

When will the third book in the series release and what is it about?

The third book set in Fairhaven is Snowflake Sweethearts. It will release in late November 2012, and is a sweet holiday romance. The Bayside Treasure friends are back, working on their matchmaking plans. This time they hope to match Irene’s grandson Alex with Annie, a young single mother with a five year-old daughter who is a personal chef.

What do you want readers to take away after reading A Man to Trust?

I hope they will have an uplifting, romantic and hope-filled break from their daily lives. I hope they’ll be touched by what Ross and Adrie learn about the value of friendship, the importance of prayer and seeking God for all the decisions about the future and how to use their gifts and talents. I hope they’ll close the last page and wish the story would continue.

Many people today find it hard to trust others. What words of encouragement would you give to those who are struggling with this problem?

It’s hard to trust when you’ve been hurt like Adrie was in this story.  I’d encourage readers to look back and see what pain or unresolved issues might be causing these struggles with trust. Talking to a trusted friend or counselor can help you work through the forgiving process and then help you sort out the lessons you can learn from the situation. Then you can begin to move forward with God’s grace and discernment. Some people are not safe, and they should not be trusted. We have to protect ourselves from people who would abuse or continually hurt us. A wise counselor or pastor can help you with this. Learning to trust God and realize He loves us and has great compassion toward us is also a wonderful help.

Thanks for inviting me over today! I love to connect with readers at Pinterest, Facebook, Twitter, and at my website. 

Thanks for being our guest today. We'll be looking for the next release in the Bayside Treasures Series.